CHAPTER 46: CHAPTER 45 - THE QUEEN IN THE TAVERN

Riven nearly choked when Ashtoria suddenly appeared before him. He quickly grabbed his glass and downed the water in one gulp, then spoke in a hoarse, breathless voice, "Anna? You...? Why?"

His words were stilted, rushed—his mind struggling to catch up with what his eyes saw. Ashtoria looked at him blankly, a flicker of confusion in her gaze, but didn’t reply right away.

Riven took a deep breath, trying to steady the pounding of his heart. After a few seconds, he looked at her again—calmer this time—and asked in a clearer voice:

"Didn’t... we already part ways?"

The question lingered between them like a held breath. All around, the tavern remained lively with voices and laughter, but in the space they shared, it felt as though time had stilled.

Ashtoria stared at him unblinking. Her face was calm, cold even—but there was something faint behind her eyes, something she didn’t show to anyone else. Then, finally, she answered:

"Yes. We will part ways," she said softly. "That’s why... I wanted to see you one last time."

Something about those words made Riven’s chest tighten. He looked down for a second, then glanced up again with a faint, bittersweet smile. But before he could speak—

"Excuse me!" Mira called cheerfully, waving to a nearby server. "Can we get another plate of rice and meat, please? Make it extra juicy!"

Both Riven and Ashtoria turned toward her.

Mira looked at them with bright eyes, completely unfazed by the heavy air between the adults. She grinned and pointed at the empty chair beside her.

"Come on, Sis Anna. Sit with us! You must be hungry, right?"

Riven paused, a soft smile tugging at his lips despite himself.

Ashtoria blinked at the girl, a little caught off guard. Then, without a word, she slowly pulled out the chair and sat down, letting herself be pulled into this brief, strange moment of peace in the middle of a storm.

The table fell into silence, even as the tavern remained filled with noise. None of them spoke after Ashtoria sat.

There were so many things Riven wanted to ask—who she truly was, what she had done while he was unconscious, why she came back when they’d already agreed to go their separate ways.

But he kept it all to himself.

He knew that the more he got involved, the harder it would be to step away. After this, they would return to being strangers. There was no need to dig deeper into things that should be left untouched. So, he said nothing—focused on the food before him, chewing slowly, though the flavor seemed dull now.

Ashtoria, seated across from him, said nothing either. She took a few small bites of the food Mira had ordered but barely tasted any of it. Her eyes stayed fixed on the plate, unmoving, as if staring through it into something only she could see.

They were supposed to part ways here in this city, Riven was right.

But she hadn’t left yet. Not because she had unfinished business in the city.

She needed to confirm something—about him, and about herself.

Why was it that she felt strange around him, even though they had barely spent any time together? Why did she let her guard down around him so easily? Why did she feel comfortable? Was it because... he didn’t know who she really was?

Would everything change if he did?

Would he grow distant, like everyone else? Fearful? Disgusted?

And why did that thought bother her so much?

Was it because... he was the first person who had treated her like a human being?

Those thoughts spiraled inside her head—unanswered, heavy.

Then... snippets of conversation from a nearby table began to drift over.

"Have you heard about that old fortress out west, near the Virewood Forest?"

"Huh? Wasn’t that the one attacked by Arkham forces recently? What’s the condition now?"

"What I don’t get is... how did Arkham even manage to bring such a large army there? Isn’t the terrain all cliffs and narrow paths?"

The voices overlapped, sometimes clear, sometimes muffled by the clatter of utensils and occasional bursts of laughter.

"I heard... the Queen herself went there. All alone. And wiped out the entire Arkham army."

"Don’t tell me... the Queen?"

"Exactly! After wiping out the enemy, she went mad. She slaughtered everyone left in the fortress. Every single person!"

"No way... Our Queen couldn’t be that cruel, right?"

"I saw her once! She killed a woman just because the woman stared at her too long!"

"Yeah! You know how? She just stood there. Didn’t move. And then... the woman exploded."

"She’s a monster."

"You think she got that power from nowhere? She made a pact with a demon, no doubt."

"What do you expect from someone who murdered her whole family just to take the throne?"

"Monster..."

"...Terrifying"

Ashtoria didn’t flinch. Her expression remained blank, betraying no emotion. But inside her, something was boiling. Her hands were clenched tightly in her lap, her nails nearly piercing her palms.

She was used to mockery, to hatred, to half-truths twisted into cheap gossip. But still... hearing all of it spoken so casually—in a public place, by people who had no idea what they were talking about—made her blood simmer.

And yet, she held herself back.

She knew that if she lost control, this place could turn into a hellscape.

And deep down... she didn’t want Riven to see that side of her.

Then, a wicked whisper crept into her mind.

’If I killed everyone in this place, how would he look at me? Would he be terrified? Would he see me as a monster?’

Ashtoria didn’t want to do it... but gods, the curiosity was unbearable.

Meanwhile, Riven... slowly turned his head.

He had only been half-listening to the gossip. But when he heard "Arkham Kingdom" and "the old fortress in the west," he began to pay attention. Then... came the mention of the Queen. And after that, the stories of slaughter, of impossible power, of a terrifying woman in a golden helm who could make people explode with a single gaze.

And in that instant, his thoughts narrowed to a single person.

He turned, slowly, to look at Ashtoria—still sitting stiffly, her eyes empty, staring at nothing.